The Dark Side
The Dark Side is a story about a Fight to the Death contest gone wrong, where the contestants rebel against the one who imprisoned them. Story Prologue Varkanax, Kyhrex, Blast, Shardak, Jareroden, Galika, Benjarmin, Sovnoron, Element Lord of Technology, Sarkanian, Thornax, Harponok, Mersery , Flardrek, Xillahk, Whiteout, Skorr, Millennium, Nobody, Metrados, 95, and Skovax. They all were, unfortunately, taken to this place. They all walked in, having a strange feeling they weren't leaving for a while. Used to leading, Whiteout and Jareroden were in the front. The male and female toa gasped in unision, marvelling at the expanse before them. It was huge. A large expance of land, about 5,600 square miles, filled with rock, forests, lakes, rivers, underground tunnels, and mountains, all on this large planet. The atmosphere was at least 10 miles high, large enough to hold the mountains and anything higher than that. The whole group started with surprise as a voice that made a being's skin crawl, seeming to come from everywhere, but nowhere. "This, is the Gameplace. You all will fight, to the death, if you want to ever leave. Only one shall survive in a week's time, if you do not want to go on to Gameplace II." "Why have you taken us here?", Jareroden asked. Whiteout yelled,"Show yourself, you coward!" "All in time.",the voice said. "The winner will fight me, as unfortunate as it may be. Go. The Game begins" And with that, all beings were teleported to different parts of the gameplace. PART ONE:Beginning Chapter 1 The Skrall known as Skovax stood atop the summit of a large peak, looking out over most of the battlefront. It was dark, as night had recently set in over the arena. Skovax could vaugely see combatants making their way about the arena. It did not seem that any major battles had taken place yet, but Skovax would bet his helmet that there would be. He started down the mountain, and when he was about a quarter of the way down, he was shot in the back. Skovax tumbled some yards, before finaly being stopped by a boulder. He raised his head, to see the bounty hunter Skorr stalking towards him. "Well, well, well, what do we have here? A Skrall, wandering all alone on the mountain? Tsk, tsk, tsk; very unwise of you, very unwise indeed." He strode up to Skovax, cocked his plasma launcher, and shot the unfortunate right in the center of his forehead. The Skrall slid to the ground, a smoking hole in his head. Skorr chuckled mircilessly, blew on the rim of his gun's barrel, and and placed it in his holster. That's one down. ---- Jareroden crept in the dark forest of the arena. He was looking for Galika. He had not seen her since the game had begun, and he was worried. He also hade to make sure to avoid some of the more dangerous combatants such as Sarkanian, the Element Lord of Technology, Benjarmin, Millennium, and many others. He heard a scraping noise behind him, and was suddenly attacked by a black and silver being. "Toa Jareroden I presume. Truely you are much less... formidible than I expceted." Standing over Jareroden, was Sovnoron. His blade was in hand. "I would have expected you to put up much more of a fight. Oh well..." Jareroden rolled out of the way just in time before Sovnoron burried his blade in the ground. He got to his feet almost instantly. "And I would have expected you to do much better as well." Sovnoron snarled, and lunged at Jareroden. Jareroden backflipped, and Sovnoron's razor-like claw slammed into a tree, going through it as if it was made of liquid. Jareroden twirled his sword. "My turn." He pressed a button on the hilt of his blade, and electricity surged out. Sovnoron gave a cry of pain as he was engulfed in lightning. When it died down after three whole minutes of electrocution, Sovnoron still stood there, alive and well (granted his armor was extremely scorched). "You will have to do much better to kill me, Toa." Sovnoron vanished into thin air at that point. Jareroden tightly gripped his sword. "Karzhani, where is he?" A loud crashing noise then insued, and Sovnoron leapt out of one of the trees. Jarerpden spun around, and decapitated the Emperor of Shadows' member in mid air. The two parts of the being thudded to the ground as Jareroden turned away. He was still walking away, when a blade flew through the air, and cut off one of his arms rom the elbow down. Jareroden cried out in pain, when the blade boomeranged, and slashed him on the thigh. The blade returned to Sovnoron's hands. "You should never turn your back on a "seemingly" fallen enemy, especially one that can regenerate." Sovnoron then raced at Jareroden, blade ready to kill. There was the sound of metal ripping through armor. Sovnoron looked down, to see Jareroden's blade embedded in his heartstone: the only place that could kill him. Jareroden pressed the button on his sword. "Goodbye, Sovnoron." A gigantic burst of electricity followed, and when it was over, nothing was left of Sovnoron, only charred dust. Jareroden then put his back to the scene, and strode off, still intent on his mission. Chapter 2 A being anybody would instantly recognize from description as the Element Lord of Technology sat on a ledge on a mountain, scanning the battlefield before him with one of the many devices he wielded. Below, he saw Varkanax slicing the entire forest before him, like he was trying to get to something in a hurry. He saw Skorr training himself by firing his blaster at nearby rocks, instantly shattering them into tiny fragments. He also saw something flying in the clouds above. All easy targets, and they could all be killed in an instant. A single shot from above and any contestant of his choice would be dead. Though he didn't care about them. His main target was Millennium, an ancient time-wielder. His skill, experience, and overall power made him a threat to the Element Lord. A threat that would have to be exterminated by someone else. The Technology Lord knew he was nowhere close to being a match for him, though he wanted to encounter him for one reason: to ask him a question. Although he knew he would be killed anyway, the Element Lord of Technology wanted a simple question answered: Why was Millennium here? It bothered him that he was here when he could just teleport away with only a wave of his hand. Of course, there were others with teleportation powers, but Mellennium concerned him the most. It was obvious that he could just leave and conquer whatever whenever, so why was he staying in the Gamplace? The Element Lord jumped off the rock he was perched on and journeyed down the mountain. He had located his target. ---- "Nobody" was flying in the sky above, enjoying the entire experience. This was his way of observing in the battlefield. He then reached upward to touch a cloud that sat there above him. I-I know these are fake he thought as his hand ran through the cloud, but..something about it makes it feel so...real. "Nobody" then flew to the side as he noticed a blast flying at him out of the corner of his eye and saw more bullets coming at him from below. "I should probably land," he said to himself. "Should've known this arena contained no birds." He flew downward into the forest and landed safely on the ground. As he flew deeper into the forest, he started thinking about the other contestants. Now who would be best for an alliance? ---- Finding the dead body of Skovax and the charred remains of Sovnoron, Merodos continued through the battlefield, trying to find somebody to kill. He had found the giant warrior Mersery earlier and was forced to retreat, knowing that his opponent's time powers would age his body to dust in a fraction of an instant. His next opponent would probably be a Makuta. His control of Antidermis would allow him to absorb it through his staff and kill any Makuta he encountered. "This should be fun," he said, licking some blood off his staff, then laughing like a maniac. That is, until he bumped into somebody. The being Merodos found was taller than Mersery. Way taller. What he had found was the gigantic form of Varkanax. He reached down and grabbed Merodos by the throat, lifted him up to his face, and raised his staff. "I have nothing against you," Varkanax said, shoving his spear near Merodos' Kanohi mask, "but if I am going to win this game, I will have to kill you." He then raised his spear. "Now hold still. This may sting a bit." "Please don't do anything you'll possibly regret later." Merodos knew he was in trouble. But he still had one plan. As Varkanax shoved his spear through Merodos' head, he saw that the Makuta/Skakdi just sat there, looking like nothing had happened, though a second later he found out that the truth was that nothing had happened. He then saw a pile of greenish gas float out of his hand, then reform into Merodos. He then burst out into laughter as he landed on the ground. "You should've seen yourself!" he said. "You thought you had me! But you didn't! Ha Ha!" He then let out a sigh, then his body flipped around and his head bent backward a full ninety degrees. The personality which called itself "Zentrak" had come out. "Jokes aside," he said, "let's go." Chapter 3 Blast watched as Varkanax and Merodos fought, then raced away from the battle. There was no reason for him to fight, and he had to return to Shardak and Kyhrex. All of the other beings in this "gameplace" were irrelevant, he and the two other Toa had to survive this game. However, finding the Toa would be a challenge. He was in a location covered in vines, and while he had searched for nearly an hour, he admitted to himself he was lost. Where are they? he wondered. They haven't wandered off, have they? They're-'' A horrible laugh echoed within Blast's head, cutting off his thoughts. ''Your friends are alive. it whispered. Though not for much longer. "Who are you?" Blast shouted. "Show yourself!" No. You will know me soon enough, little Toa. For now...meet my slaves. The voice vanished. Blast saw a movement in the darkness, and he drew the Scythe of Creation. He saw, slowly, a figure move in the distance. Slowly, it walked closer. This will be easy. Blast thought. He couldn't figure out what this being was, but it obviously was weak and would pose no threat to him. Suddenly, an explosion of acid flung Blast backwards. As his vision cleared, he saw a being he recognized as Azzurok standing before him. The Mattrelor's face twisted into a maniacal smile, and he flung acid at Blast once more. Blast dodged again, and retaliated by firing a blast from the Scythe. Azzurok snarled, and drew a massive blue sword. Blast readied his scythe, and blocked the Mattrelor's first blow. Azzurok retaliated, and Blast narrowly ducked the blade. He stabbed below the Mattrelor's guard, and this time the Mattrelor had to stagger away from Blast. Blast readied to deal a final blow, but Azzurok flung acid at him again. Blast dodged easily, but by the time the acid vanished, the Mattrelor stood before him, ready to deal another blow. Blast blocked narrowly, but the sword clipped him on the shoulder. The Mattrelor struck again, and Blast's scythe was flung into the undergrowth. Disarmed and weakened, Blast ran. Azzurok smiled again. "Run if you like, little Toa, but this is just the beginning. My master wishes to meet you - and won't care if you are...damaged a little." Blast saw Azzurok morph into a massive blue cloud. Blast knew what Color Lords were capable of. He couldn't kill it... ...But he knew that he could slow it. Grabbing the Scythe, Blast raised it above his head and fired. The half-formed Mattrelor dodged easily, and began firing bolts of acid at Blast. Blast watched as they came down on him from all sides and raised the scythe. The acid was flung away from him in all directions. The Mattrelor snarled in rage and re-formed, chasing after Blast and firing acid blasts at the Toa. At point-blank range, he could hardly miss. Blast fell to the ground as the acid struck him- And an explosion of acid struck the trees all around him. Blast turned and ran as the Mattrelor vanished underneath the massive trees. Even as he ran, he could hear the trapped Azzurok screaming in rage as more of the trees collapsed on top of him. Chapter 4 The cold, empty depths of the arena bid no welcome. Its deathly-quiet call sent waves of fear shivering down the spines of all within the Gameplace. However, at the same time, it also energized a strange sense of lust for battle. The Gameplace's atmosphere provoked some kind of invigorating desire to combat another. It was very stimulating. It was also a very brilliant plan to put the contestants on edge and more battle-eager, resulting in more destructive and deadly battles. The contestants heightened senses of alert and awareness seemed to radiate from even the walls itself. Many in the Gameplace were trying to resist this call for battle, though a select few were trying to embrace it fully. Skorr was one of them. As he strode through a deep valley with staggeringly tall mountains that seemed to circle and cut around him, cutting off all light and creating a freezing, shadowy dusk to match the aurora of this place. Skorr was never one to look at good and evil perspectives, but his instincts seemed to be shouting at him that this place truly was pure, raw evil and that he should turn back right now. Skorr ignored the calls of his sub-conscious. he had ignored them before, he would ignore them now. Suddenly, a long distance away, he caught the glimpse of someone moving in the shadows. Someone tall, someone menacing, yet someone too far away to recognize. Activating his wing blades, Skorr soared into the air, and landed on a distant rocky, outcropping ledge on one of the mountains. He stared down the scope of his weapon, and activated its infrared sightings, he spied a target he thought he would never encounter in this entire arena. It was Makuta Harponok. What a kill this shall be, he thought to himself. What a kill, indeed. The laser sightings locked onto the crimson-armored Makuta and Skorr waited a few seconds as he primed his weapon. He slowly began adding pressure to the trigger of the weapon and thought. Good night, Makuta. Abruptly, Skorr's head reeled backwards in shock as he took a sharp gasp for air. His muscles had completely tensed, but that was not the point. The point was that he was now hearing a sharp hissing noise coming from the cord that was quite usually plugged directly in to his skull. On this occasion, someone had decided to pull it out. Immediately, Skorr felt his heightened senses of sight and hearing painfully reduce back to their normal levels. The physical and mental shock of having the cord removed would have sent a normal being into a deep trauma, and now Skorr was trying desperately to hold onto the world around him. Summoning all his remaining strength, Skorr turned his head to look at his attacker, and when he did his eyes widened in shock. Because there standing behind him, holding onto his wriggling and hissing cord, was the ancient entity Millennium. As Skorr grew weaker and began to lose his grip on consciousness, Millennium leaned in close and whispered. "Not yet, Skorr. I cannot allow you to attempt your kill. I need these contestants for a higher purpose: A purpose that will result in my victory in more than one way. All the pieces of the game are falling into place, and I cannot allow unpredictable factors to disrupt my goals." And with that, the world surrounding Skorr blackened, and he felt himself fall off the ledge and gravity claim his body. He felt the speed he was falling at, he felt his weapons slip from his fingers, he felt his instincts shout one final thing at his tired brain as the ground rapidly grew closer: Survive. And with that, Skorr met the hard ground in a mighty crash. The last thing Skorr would see as he fell into the depths of deary unconsciousness was Harponok approaching the entrance of a distant cave, decorated with letters of an ancient Matoran dialect, and Millenium looming overhead in the shadows with a twisted grin on his face as he disappeared into the shadows of the Gameplace. ---- Zentrak charged forward with a speed that the much larger and bulkier Varkanax had no time to follow and react to. Zentrak launched himself into the air, even as Varkanax sent powerful blasts sonic energy flying at him, each blast only missing Zentrak. The sinister and calculating alter ego of Merodos landed atop of Varkanax's beack, and began swiping at him with his powerful hammer blade. Varkanax roared in fury as he blindly tried to claw Zentrak off his back and shoulders, though Zentrak's smaller, lighter, and more agile size allowed him to dodge each of the demon's efforts. Summoning all of his strength, Zentrak plunged his weapon deep into Varkanax's hip, and in a horrific show of sadistic cruelty, began to push it deeper into the wound until it reached the pommel of the sword. Then he began twisting the blade slowly and painfully. Varkanax's let out a loud scream. A roar that made the sonic screams' of the Makuta seem feeble and sweet in comparison. The roar was so loud, it nearly deafened Zentrak; nearly tore apart his mind, his will, and what was left of his very soul. Unable to clutch onto the back of the Elemental Demon for any longer, Zentrak was sent flying away from Varkanax until he was embedded halfway through a massive boulder. however, this didn't stop Zentrak's collision course. Varkanax's scream was still pushing he deeper through the rock, until he broke through it and flew through another boulder until he hit a cliff face and sagged to the ground. His eyes were wide open, his mind completely stunned, his heart pounding so fast and furiously he could hear it in his very ears. He emerged from the ruins of the cliff, his armor crushed and broken, and tried to regain his senses. His mind was swapping between personalities, as if it was trying to figure out which personality it was supposed to be. it was in this confusion that Zentrak did not see the furious, hulking Varkanax charge at full speed at him, unleashing a powerful blast of white-hot electricity directly at him. Even though his movements were now sluggish and sloth-like due to his exhaustion from the injuries he had sustained, Zentrak was still fast enough to dodge the blast. Zentrak looked back at the spot where he had been standing, and noticed the massive tunnel that Varkanax had drilled into the cliff face with his blast. Had Zentrak been a second too late, he would have been killed. He finally decided to stop running and panted furiously. "Sorry, demon. But I'm not in the mood to be fried today!" Varkanax turned to face him in rage, and launched a massive cyclone of darkness blast at him. The shadow tornado hit Zentrak dead on, and in a motion faster than one could possibly follow, Varkanax sent him flying up into the sky. Higher and higher Zentrak flew, at a speed that rivaled that of the Kanohi Kakama. Finally, he speed slowed down as he reached the borderline that divided the atmosphere from the dpeths of outer space. Zentrak was now drifting between the fine line of life and death. He knew if he was to drift into space in his current state, his Antidermis would quickly freeze and perish. However, if he fell back into the world below him, he would survive but face death by a 100,000 meter drop. It seemed that his only way to survive was to remain in low orbit around the planet. However, fate was not quite done with him. Suddenly, he felt his body increase in weight so dramatically he began to fall back down to the earth. Varkanax was obviously not done with him yet. As he began to fall back down to the ground, he decided to take in the sight of the Gameplace. Using his telepathic abilities, Zentrak performed a quick scan of the region, detecting all the beings trapped in this place. His mind past through their souls and felt their emotions and passions; their fears their dreams. All but those with mental shielding were seen before Zentrak's eyes as he fell closer to Varkanax. As he approached the ground Zentrak charged a great well of shadow energy within the confounds of his body, and roughly 100 meters away from the ground, he unleashed it upon the unsuspecting Varkanax, whose gigantic form was thrown against the cliff-face. Another blast power from Zentrak's eyes pushed Varkanax deeper into the rock. As Zentrak closed his eyes as he felt his death approaching more rapidly, he felt a strange senastion. He felt his body grow lighter. Varkanax was using his powers again. He was not that much lighter than before, though as he made his impact against the ground, he realized it was enough to prevent him from dieing. As he lay motionless in the crater, he watched as Varkanax approached him. The demon stared down at him and smiled. "Not long ago, I said I had nothing against you, yet I was just going to kill you anyway. Well, I have changed my mind." "Wh-what?" croaked Zentrak, that one word being the only thing he was capable of saying. "That's right," continued Varkanax in his darkly menacing tone. "Why let you have the mercy of death, when I can make you suffer something much worse? Why not make you make you lose a part of yourself, and leave incomplete, broken and hollow? I'm going to break you, and leave you fractured forever, and when I'm done with you, you are going to be crawling to the closet, insignificant scum begging for death." "T-there's nothing you can do to me," groaned Zentrak. "Nothing that can make my suffering worse. I will not break before you. Do what you want to me. I will not break before anyone, least of all you." "Very well," replied Varkanax with a smile as he raised the Spear of Fusion. He aimed it directly at Zentrak's head, charged it to its brink, and said: "Oh, and Zentrak, send my regards to Merodos when you meet him." Zentrak opened his eyes wide in realization as to what Varkanax had planned for him. "No!" he cried, but his last words were already unheard as Varkanax fired the Spear's power off in reverse, and watched as a second being split from Zentrak in a gruesome, ornate light. As Varkanax turned around and slowly walked away, he took one last opportunity to look down into the crater and observe the unconscious forms of both Zentrak.... and Merodos. Chapter 5 In the depths of the Gameplace, below the mountains, lay a massive desert. Among the swirling sands, walked a single being. His name was Thornax. Thornax's long arms grasped a small sword as his launchers aimed ahead. Suddenly, someone else stepped into Thornax's path. It was the silver Toa called 95. In his hand, 95 gripped a large longsword, pointing it menacingly at Thornax. "Oh look, a little Toa, walking up to fight me all by himself." The launchers on Thornax's shoulders swiveled toward 95, and then fired. Four frits flew toward 95. The first shot missed, the second one flew way off course, and the third and fourth one struck home, blasting 95 several feet across the sands. 95 looked up, gripping his sword, as Thornax stalked toward him, launchers reloaded... ---- Blast ran from the Lord of Blue, the Scythe of Creation clutched in his grasp. He had recovered it shortly after fleeing the Color Lord. He never expected what happened next. The ground in front of him began to shake, and a roar escaped the soil. Sarkanian blasted out of the ground, dirt raining off it's coils as it's jaws opened. Blast stared up at the monstrous serpent as it stared at him, a predatory grin plastered across it's bestial features. "Oh... no." He said, raising his scythe in a feeble attempt to defend himself. Obviously, it didn't work. Sarkanian slammed it's head down to crush Blast, foam streaming off it's fangs and sunlight reflecting off the beast's hide... ...and then a blue-armored Toa leapt in front of Blast, knocking him away as the head of Sarkanian struck the ground where the newcomer stood. "Kyhrex!" Shouted Blast. He was too late to save his friend, and Sarkanian opened it's mouth to roaqr at Kyhrex, who stood her ground defiantly. Crystillix broke into a run, his scythe glowing. Before he could intervene, Sarkanian snapped up Kyhrex in it's mouth and swallowed the female Toa. She screamed in horror as she was devoured, and then the jaws slammed shut, producing a sickening squelch! sound. Blast shuddered, and then drew the scythe, desperately trying to formulate a plan as Sarkanian began moving toward him. He looked into the sky, and saw an orange and red being flying toward them. Sarkanian's eyes narrowed at the newcomer, who dodged the blast of acid breath Sarkanian spat at him and then landed on it's back, raising a small blade to fight off the colossus. Only one question hung in Blast's mind: Could anything stop this monster? ---- As Harponok approached the cave mouth, he felt a tingling feeling race through his Antidermis. It was like something malevolent and evil was watching him. Something even more powerful than Harponok himself. For a second, Harponok wished his robot, Nevotnor-411, was with him. The small blue drone would have been able to scan the entire area and tell Harponok if anything was wrong. The computerized weapons systems inside it would have also come in handy. Silently, Harponok removed his large shoulderpads, carved from the severed heads of two Vohtarak spiders. Taking them both in one hand, Harponok attached them to the end of his protosteel javelin. With a whirr of power, the two weapons fused together. The red-armored Makuta grinned wickedly and extended the new Spider Smacker in front of him. He knew the weapon had the power to destroy anything, and would not break no matter what happened to it. Harponok would need the Spider Smacker in case something happened that even Harponok could not handle. Harponok stood silently, listening to the sounds of his own breathing. Then it hit him. He was made of Antidermis, a green gas that needed no food, water... or oxygen. He didn't breath, which meant... something else was breathing. Chapter 6 All Jareroden could think was I'm going to die. This is why. FIVE MINUTES EARLIER Whiteout walked along the the beach of the west sea, waiting for someone to fight her. Her adrenaline was rushing, all senses alert for any sign of movement. She hoped whoever it was would be formidable. Wait, she thought, there's electricity charging. A second later, lightning shot from Jareroden's blade, hitting Whiteout in the back. She just stood there, waiting for two minutes before Jareroden was aware that nothing was happening. Whiteout turned, and what Jareroden saw gave him a start of dread. Her eyes were glowing bright white, marking her as a Toa of White. "You should have read up on our kind before you attacked, punk." Jareroden stood his ground as Whiteout raised her axe. She swung it with all her might behind it, Jareroden staggering as the weight of the axe and the force behind it hit his blade. "I have been. Check out what I rigged." Jareroden replied triumphantly. He pressed an extra button on his blade, blackness coming out of it. Whiteout being white, her life force was draining. Whiteout groaned, then said,"I'm not done with you yet." Thin strips on her armor started glowing, and new power surged through her. Her eyes glowed brighter, and the blackness receeded. She got up, the regret was starting to show on Jareroden's face. Merciless eyes glared at him, and she advanced. Blades locked, Jareroden was just a bit stronger than Whiteout. She was starting to give. What happened next filled Jareroden with dread. I should have fought someone else. She turned almost blue, as all of herself transformed into pure white. She became too strong for Jareroden, and soon his right hand was severed. His left arm already severed, he fell to his knees, starting to pass out from exhaustion. The last thing he thought before falling into unconciousness was, I'm going to die. ---- Harponok turned, and saw nothing. The only article of interest was a picture frame on the far wall. The image inside was that of a black cloud. The breathing continued behind him, seeming to come from the picture frame himself. Harponok walked over to it, and in the basic matoran dialect, etched under the picture was one word. Ennithek What happened next Harponok would only vaguely remember. He fought against the mental attack that the Dark One threw at him. He struggled to hold onto his will, trying to stay sane. Harponok failed in doing so. Tiny Makuta, you will be stripped of your sanity for the rest of my Game. No being stays sane after thinking my true name. The crazed Harponok ran from the cave, uttering meaningless words. If he was sane, he would have rather died. PART TWO: Alliances Chapter 7 This chapter was written by 95 rolled away from Thornax's blade as it buried itself in the ground. The silver Toa sprang to his feet, and then jumped backwards, away from the green-armored warrior's next blow. Thornax struck again, his two long arms spinning through the air towards the Toa of Life. Toa 95 grabbed ahold of both Thornax's arms and spun them, until eventually the mutated plant was entangled and fell to the ground. 95 stopped to catch his breath, recovering for a moment. Defeating Thornax in this way had made him slightly dizzy, and now he knelt down to clear his head. Recovered, he picked up his sword and walked toward Thornax. Thornax's orange eyes glared daggers at 95, and then his launchers burst free, firing three blasts at 95. The first went wide, slamming into the ground by 95, the second flew far overhead, but the third and final projectile flew on a collision course directly at 95's face. The Toa, to save his own life, raised his blade, the only weapon he had, to block it. The fruit hit the ground and struck the sword, shattering it into pieces. The chunks of metal scattered onto the hard ground. "And there goes your last hope of killing me..." chuckled Thornax. 95 snarled, and activated his Ignika. Thornax's eyes, once triumphant, widened in shock and terror as his life energy was quickly sapped away. Within several seconds, he died and slumped onto the ground, his arms unfurling around him and splaying across the ground. 95, now unarmed, stood to his feet and looked out across the arena. Who would be next? ---- Sarkanian roared as the orange being landed on his head, the small sword raised. The being didn't stand a chance, and was quickly flipped onto the ground. Blast looked away, the orange warrior was sure to be killed. Or not. Before his eyes, the being began to morph, transforming into a duplicate Sarkanian. The real Sarkanian growled, and rushed the shapeshifter, the two serpents biting and tearing at each other. Blast stared in shock as the two Sarkanians battled. The real Sarkanian, which was more used to using it's larger body, enveloped it's foe in it's jaws and began to bite. His foe quickly abandoned the disguise, shifting into a protodite before flying away, shifting into his true form, a being with wings, a tentacle, and a round green face with orange armor, and fired a blast of sound at Sarkanian's ear. The snake screeched and retreated, slithering into the earth. A huge explosion rose around them, showering them with soil as the beast left. Once it was gone, Blast approached the newcomer. "I can't believe it! You just beat Sarkanian! You.... that's impossible! You were Sarkanian-bones! I... Kyhrex... oh..." Blast lowered his head, and the glow vanished from his Sythe of Creation. Then he raised his blade. "Who are you?" His new companion raised his blade in response. "I... am Nobody." Blast raised an eye. "Seriously. Nobody. That's sad." Nobody looked angry. "Nobody is my code-name, fool. Now, I need allies. Are you in, or out?" Blast shook his hand. "Deal." ---- Millennium stalked across the ground, his Axe of Eternity raised. Suddenly, a beeping noise came from behind him. Millennium ignored it. But he could not ignore the blast of energy that came flying toward him next. Millennium's eyes widened in surprise as the beam struck him and sent him flying several feet through the air. As he got to his feet, a growl escaping his lips, he saw the Element Lord of Technology standing before him. "You...." Millennium snarled. "Yes, it is I. Now are you going to lie there and make this boring, or at least give me a bit of a challenge before I end your existence?" The Lord of Technology sneered, the mechanical components that made up his face twisting into a nasty grin. Millennium fired a powerful blast of Time at the Element Lord, intending to age the being into dust. To his surprise, something else entirely happened. The Element Lord grew and expanded, until he towered several feet above the leader of the Shadow of Ages. Various new weapons systems had appeared on him, and he looked like he was ready to test them on Millennium. "Moronic fool. You believe you can defeat me with your petty Time powers? As Time moves forward, Technology grows in power. But you've learned your lesson too late... so now you die for your idiocy." The Element Lord of Technology laughed. Millennium stood to his full height, raising his axe to charge at his foe, but a huge blade grew from each of ELT's arms and blocked the swing. The two warriors began swinging their blades, attempting to bring each other down with powerful strikes. The battle may have ended quickly, had not the ground exploded out from under them, sending them both flying as Sarkanian arrived on the scene. Millennium landed on his feet, brandishing the Axe of Eternity. The Element Lord activated his thrusters, floating softly to the ground. Sadly, neither of them new that all their powers would not affect the behemoth. It didn't age, and ELT's various weapons would not leave even a scratch. It was truly the clash of the titans, as the three most powerful contestants in the Gameplace fought to the death. Chapter 8 Jareroden woke up, and was relieved. I'' didn't ''die! He saw no sign of the mysteriously absent toa of white. He got up, looked down, and was startled. She was... Her sheild and sword are on the ground! Only the best warriors would be able to defeat a Toa of White. Or... In his mind, the astonished toa of psionics gasped. The Toa of Black is here too! ---- An hour earlier The toa known as Whiteout groaned as she was weakenning against Xillahk's strength. "You should be in the skies, Whiteout. You know you never survived well on the ground!" Under the weight of Xillahk's sword, she gritted her teeth and snarled. "I think you forgot something." Her body grew quite bright, and Xillahk staggered. But then, he turned dark, and black, and then, he said triumphanly, "I'll get you in the sky!" He snickered cruelly, then, with all of his might, stripped Whiteout of her weapons, and launched her high and fast, into the burning heat of the sun. ---- "Looking for someone?" A black-clad being asked Jareroden. The silver toa started, turned, and looked in dread at what he saw. Again. "Actually, yes." Jareroden tried to keep the fear from his words. "I need an ally." "And where to you think you'll find one of those?" The Black Toa asked. "I'm asking you," Jareroden said, "to be my ally." The toa of Black deemed Xillahk scoffed mockingly. "you want me to be your ally? I will have nothing of the sort!" The silver toa of psionics winced, then braced himself for an attack. "But..." Xillahk considered thoughtfully, "You can be my ally. For a time." Jareroden asked, "Deal?" "Deal." Xillahk answered. The two walked away from the light, and went to the dark side... Chapter 9 Galika carefully shifted her position, being careful to make as little sound as possible. For the seventh time, the Toa of Water carefully studied the terrain around the giant tree in which she crouched. Small bushes with purple leaves littered the ground. A tree larger than the one she waited in loomed over the forest. Small flowers dotted the earth, which held little, if any, grass. She saw no sign of any other beings, but one never knew who might be lurking in the shadows... Finally, she slid cautiously to the ground. Galika froze as a twig snapped. She could feel the blood pounding through her veins, could hear her heart skip a beat. She bent her legs slightly, preparing for fight or flight. The silver-armored Jareroden stepped through the trees, and the female Toa sighed in relief. Happy to see him, words began to roll rapidly out of her mouth. "Jareroden! I've been looking all over for-" Galika stopped in mid-sentence, as a second Toa followed Jareroden into the clearing where she stood. The new arrival was clad in black and silver armor, and carried a long and deadly-looking dagger. From the expression on his face, Galika guessed that many a brave Toa's blood had been wiped from it. But was the mask that shocked Galika the most. It was a deathly shade of black near the top, transitioning from black to silver on the way down, and ended in four sharp fangs. The new arrival smirked, not an especially comforting action. His ebony armor glinted in a shaft of sunlight as he looked quizzically from Galika to Jareroden, guessing easily that these two were more than best friends. "You know each other." Xillahk stated a fact, not a question. Jareroden hesitated, then replied. "Yes, we know each other... very well." Galika coolly studied Xillahk. "You're allied with Jareroden?" Xillahk nodded slyly. "Then you're allied with me." said Galika firmly. Several minutes later... Jareroden flexed his arm, testing the muscles and newly-reformed joints. It was fortunate for him that Galika wore the Mask of Quick-Healing, very fortunate indeed. The battle-worn Toa of Psionics turned to Xillahk. "What now?" he questioned. Xillahk grinned wolfishly. "Three guesses, and the first two don't count." ---- Makuta Benjarmin stared down at the shattered body of the once-proud Makuta named Harponok. The fight had not even been worth mentioning, perhaps even disappointing. In Harponok's insane condition, he had been completely unaware of his surroundings. A blow to the head, a quick burst of Chain Lightning, and Harponok slept. Permanently. Now, as Benjarmin thoughtfully considered the body of his victim, he was troubled. Who... or what... could do this to a Makuta? What could remove sanity so easily, and so efficiently? Deep down, Benjarmin really didn't want to know. The tall and lean Makuta stood there for a long minute, lost in dark, unpleasant thoughts. And then he shook his head and cursed himself for a fool. There were plenty of other contestants that had the ability to do this to Harponok. No use worrying needlessly. But as he strode away into the dark forest, something followed him, something with clammy breath and twisted, icy hands that nagged ceaselessly at the back of his mind. It was fear. But a mere emotion could not restrain Benjarmin. He was a Makuta, and they did not feel fear, for they were its masters, as the saying was. And Benjarmin was no exception. Nearly an hour later, Benjarmin found himself deep in the heart of a dark primeval forest. Ancient trees loomed high overhead, blocking out the thin rays of sunlight. He paused for a moment, resting his sparse form. And as he did so, he heard the gentle, quiet sound of running water filtering through the thick forest. He followed the sound for a single reason: other contestants would be needing water soon, and they would find it. And he would be there to greet them. Chapter 10 This chapter was written by BionicleKid Benjarmin came to the lake and saw Nobody and Blast drinking from it. As he approached, he overheard them speaking. "Wait. Why do we all have to fight each other?" Blast asked. Nobody replied, "We don't. We have to kill others who want to kill. And, I've been feeling this nag at the back of my mind, ordering me to fight, to kill, and be cruel. It's cold and tempting, but strangely appealing..." Blast cut off his words. "But we don't have to fall to the temptation." "It is appealing, but I certainly agree. What do you have in mind?" Nobody replied."First of all, survive. We can try to find a way to get to the person that is making us... do whatever this savage thing is." Benjarmin was certainly amused. It seems as they are trying to find this truly Evil being. A chill went up the Makuta's spine. If it gives me fear, they have no chance. I'll put them out of his misery... He cocked his Dark Matter rifle, and aimed for Blast. "Wait. I heard something... like, a gun being cocked." Blast said in suspicion. Nobody spied Benjarmin, and dove for Blast. "Watch out!!!" He tackled the other Toa, and black-and-lime Makuta missed by a hair. Benjarmin walked from his hiding spot. "I see that you have good eyes, Toa. I guess I'll have to remove them, just in case you survive today. Which you won't." Benjarmin chuckled and shot electricity from his hands. Nobody saw it just before the Makuta released the lightning. He somersaulted, and shape-shifted into a duplicate of Benjarmin. Nobody declared amusedly, "I guess you have never seen a shape-shifting Toa. I hope you have the guts to kill what looks like you. Oh, wait, Makuta don't have guts!" "Hmm," Blast said mockingly, "Maybe we should see if he does!" Benjarmin replied with, "I assure you, I don't. But I bet you do. I'd really like to see what a shape-shifting Toa's innards look like." The Nobody/Benjarmin charged in sync with Blast, and they both slashed with their weapons. The real Benjarmin easily blocked Blast's, but he was having a harder time with his duplicate. They were quite evenly matched, and Nobody was getting tired of being a fake Benjarmin. "It seems we are evenly matched," The real Benjarmin stated. Nobody replied with an equally Benjarmin-like voice, "It seems so. I suppose I could use an earlier disguise I used." In that instant, the fake Makuta warped and shifted, until an exact replica of Sarkanian. Chapter 11 This chapter was written by With a snarl of rage, Millennium leapt towards the Element Lord of Technology, his Axe of Eternity flashing in the morning sunlight. Had Millennium not attempted to destroy his foe with a blast of temporal energy early on in their conflict, causing him to increase rapidly in size, the blow would have chopped his head clean off his shoulders. Instead, however, the axe blade carved a formidable gash in the Element Lord’s chest plate, but did no obvious damage. Snarling, Millennium’s foe counterattacked with a ferocious storm of Nakalare combat maneuvers, his clawed pinchers hammering at the ancient Time-wielder again and again. Millennium was forced on the defensive, but still managed to get in a single, powerful strike with the Axe of Eternity, his weapon producing a solid crunch as it struck the Lord of Technology in the chest. His foe staggered back, unmasked hatred clearly visible in his angular orange eyes. Suddenly, about two dozen or so duplicates of Millennium popped into existence in front of the Element Lord, all wielding their own Axe of Eternity. Millennium’s voice burst from the crowd of identical warriors. “The Axe of Eternity can create illusions even in minds as strong as yours, my enemy. You’re a powerful foe, I must admit, but let’s see how well you fight when you can’t tell where the strikes are coming from.” To Millennium’s surprise, however, the Element Lord just stood directly in the middle of the duplicates, regarding them coldly. “An old trick. One I can see through with ease.” The Element Lord’s eyes glowed, then narrowed, and he suddenly rushed forward, charging straight toward the true Millennium. The duplicates moved to stop him, but the Element Lord of Technology ran right through them as if they didn’t exist. Which, of course, was true. Without stopping, he plowed into Millennium, tackling him to the ground. Millennium struggled, and before their battle, might have been able to free himself, but the Lord of Technology’s strength had increased with his size. If looks could kill, the Element Lord would have been dead three times over. Millennium glared daggers at his enemy, until a flash of realization, an important memory, suddenly and painfully returned to the surface. “You fool! The beast! Where is it?” Millennium spoke the words so suddenly, even the Lord of Technology’s eyes widened. Both got their answer as the ground beneath them erupted in a spray of earth and dirt, followed by an all-too familiar roar as their old foe emerged from the ground. Seventy-two feet of ancient monster moved surprisingly fast across the landscape, stopping both the Element Lord of Technology and Millennium in their tracks. Neither one could move, but the Element Lord of Technology broke from his trance first, grabbing the Axe of Eternity and hurling it toward Millennium. The blade sliced into Millennium’s side, shredding armor and wounding his foe badly. “Goodbye, Millennium.” Growled the Element Lord. “I’m not stupid enough to stay here and fight that. Good luck on your own.” With those final words, the Element Lord vanished into the air, teleported away. Millennium stared up at the serpent-like nightmare before him, his cold eyes giving nothing away. Sarkanian decided to strike first, slamming his head down towards Millennium. Millennium moved with surprising speed given his injuries, launching himself away from his opponent, then landing a crippling blow from his axe on Sarkanian's head, sending his monstrous opponent spiraling away. "Not today, beast." Snarled Millennium. "I can't have you interfering with my plans just yet." With that, he vanished, then reappeared directly on top of the beast's tail. Snarling with rage, Sarkanian swept his tail forward. Millennium grinned wickedly, then, at the last moment, leapt off, sailing away into the distance as the force of the momentum carried him forward. ---- Varkanax smashed his way through the massive forest, impatience and hatred clearly visible on his features. After crippling one of his foes, an insane Skakdi/Makuta called Merodos, he was searching for other opponents to crush into dust. Suddenly, Varkanax spied a strange object on the horizon, moving quickly toward him. His first thought was that he had been found by Sarkanian, the one contestant he truly feared, but an instant later, it struck the ground, creating a huge crater and an explosion of dust, and Varkanax was proven wrong as a tall (though nowhere near his gargantuan size), silver and black figure rose from the crater, wearing a tattered cape and carrying a massive, deadly-looking axe. "Millennium." Growled Varkanax, drawing his weapons, the Spear of Fusion and the Crescent Scythe. Millennium took a moment to consider the odds against his colossal foe. He had been wounded pretty badly during his battle with Sarkanian and the Element Lord, and he didn't think another battle with Varkanax would end well. "Put you weapons away, demon." Growled Millennium. "I'm not here to fight you." Varkanax snarled wickedly. "Well, what if I am?" "Oh please," Millennium replied. "Anyone could tell how wounded we both are. So do you just want to fight now, and wear ourselves out until Sarkanian comes for us?" Grumbling, Varkanax lowered his weapons. He could see the logic in what Millennium was saying. "Instead," said Millennium, "I suggest we combine our powers, and, disgusting as the idea is, team up with other alliances to find whatever's keeping us here." Varkanax snorted. "What makes you think we're being kept here?" "Do you honestly think I wouldn't have tried teleporting away the instant we were brought here? I'm a powerful warrior, but even I know better than to challenge Sarkanian. No, we need to find whoever is in charge of this... GamePlace... and then, when they are dead, we can finish our conflict. So, what do you think?" "I hate to agree with you, but that is an excellent idea. I prefer to kill at my leisure." So, the two villains stalked off into the forest, plotting their conquest. But elsewhere, the Dark One's cold eyes saw all... Chapter 12 Characters Category:Stories Category:Fight to the Death Contests Category:User:BionicleKid Category:User:Baterra1202 Category:User:Varkanax39 Category:User:Toa 95 Category:User:Chicken Bond Category:User:Toa Roden Category:User:Collector1